What You Need to Know About Today’s Housing Market in Ottawa
Interest rates are in flux - and it can be scary to know if you’re making the right choice in today’s market. We spoke with Luke Thompson about the current market and his tips and tricks for deciding whether it’s time to buy, sell, or wait.
Luke explains “We don’t have a crystal ball, and every situation is unique.” It’s important to remember that your best advice will come from a one-on-one meeting with a skilled real estate agent and mortgage advisor. Depending on your current financial situation, your current home or other assets, and your current bills, your needs at this time will change.
With that said, Luke also explains that “In speaking with some home financing partners, the general consensus is looking into short or mid-length fixed-term mortgages (around 2-3 years in length).”
The reasoning for this is as follows:
Fixed rates are cheaper than variable rates at the moment
While your variable rate may drop in the future, the height that it is at right now will eat up a lot of your ‘gains’ before you see the benefit of it dropping
Luke explains that “given where inflation is now, and how far it still has to fall to get to the 2% target, there’s a good chance that we won’t see interest rates lower than 2% for a long time. Unfortunately, we’ll all have to adjust our expectations and budgets to account for this new reality.”
If you’re looking to buy or sell in the next few years, you will have to focus on what the market is like now - not what it was like last year! As the market shifts to accommodate for the pandemic real estate boom, we’re headed back to a balanced market as we cope with changes in the economy due to inflation. It will take a lot for the market to return to the speed at which is was accelerating previously.
Because of this, it’s important for buyers and sellers to take a look at their current situation, and not spend time dwelling on the past market or opportunities. All you can do is make strategic choices utilizing the current market, and the advice of a trusted real estate agent and mortgage advisor.
Luke Thompson
613 316 5967
luke@newpurveyors.com
